The Missions celebrate after finishing off a no-hitter of the Arkansas Travelers. (Photo: Rey Holguin)
The Missions no-hit Arkansas on an otherwise forgettable day in the system.
Luis Campusano just keeps hitting for El Paso. (Photo: Jorge Salgado)
Sacramento River Cats 11, Chihuahuas 8
Key Stats: CF Shogo Akiyama 3-for-6, 3B, 3 RBI; C Luis Campusano 2-for-3, 3B, 2 BB; 3B Matthew Batten 1-for-3, HR (5), 3 RBI, 2 BB; RHP Jesse Scholtens 5 IP, 7 H, 4 ER, 7 K, 1 BB; RHP Aaron Northcraft 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 K
Prospect Watch: El Paso jumped out to an early lead, but the River Cats kept up a steady stream of offense all game and claimed a series split. Batting out of the leadoff spot, Shogo Akiyama collected three hits including a triple. The 34-year-old outfielder is now hitting .350/.350/.600 in four games since joining the organization. The Padres pursued Akiyama when he originally hit the international free agent market in 2019 after a strong career in Japan, but he opted instead to sign with Cincinnati. After two disappointing seasons, Akiyama was released by the Reds during spring training. With Trayce Thompson having elected free agency after his brief audition with the big league club ended, Akiyama joins Nomar Mazarra in providing outfield depth in El Paso. … Luis Campusano collected his fourth multi-hit game in five games in the series and also added a pair of walks. The 23-year-old backstop is hitting .423/.531/.846 with a 7:6 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 32 plate appearances since rejoining the Chihuahuas earlier this month. … Matthew Batten, who hit six homers in each of the last two seasons, launched his fifth homer of 2022 as he continues to outperform in El Paso. The 26-year-old infielder, who also drew two more free passes, now carries a .308/.417/.492 line, good for an OPS nearly 135 points higher than he’d managed in 228 Triple-A games coming into the year.
Lake Bachar made his first post-surgery start a memorable one in San Antonio. (Photo: Rey Holguin)
Missions 4, Arkansas Travelers 0
Key Stats: RHP Lake Bachar 3 IP, 0 H, 2K; RHP Moises Lugo (W, 2-0) 3 IP, 0 H, 3 K; RHP Carlos Belen 2 IP, 0 H, 1 BB; RHP Kevin Kopps 1 IP, 0 H, 1 BB, 1 K; DH Esteury Ruiz 1-for-3, BB, SB (23), CS (3); 1B Yorman Rodriguez 2-for-4, 2B; CF Korry Howell 1-2, 2B
Prospect Watch: Righties Lake Bachar, Moises Lugo, Carlos Belen and Kevin Kopps combined for the Mission’s ninth franchise no-hitter, blanking the Mariners affiliate on 108 total pitches. Bachar, making his first appearance since undergoing Tommy John surgery in early 2021, worked three crisp innings, recording a pair of strikeouts with a fastball that touched 95 but sat a tick or two below according to the broadcast gun. The righty, now 26, showed well in his first taste of the Texas League back in 2019, but between the pandemic and surgery, hadn’t appeared since. … Lugo, 23, got through three full innings for the first time on the season. The righty has allowed just one earned run in 13 innings over his last six appearances, though Sunday was his first appearance without a walk this season. He’s punched out 22 in 17.2 innings. … Belen issued a two-out walk in the eighth to end the perfect game bid, but was otherwise unscathed. The converted reliever has fought command all year, issuing nine free passes in 15.1 innings. While opponents are hitting just .193, the extra runners have translated into a 4.11 ERA. … Kopps gave up a two-out walk of his own in the ninth, but bounced back to get a full count strikeout to end the game. After a rough trip to Corpus, the Houston native worked a pair of scoreless frames on the homestand. .. Korry Howell continued his resurgence in May with a double and a pair of RBI today to push his slash line for May to .292/.525/.458.
Fred Schlichtholz first pitched for Fort Wayne back in 2018. (Photo: Jeff Nycz)
South Bend Cubs 5, TinCaps 1
Key Stats: DH Corey Rosier 1-for-3, 3B, BB; C Brandon Valenzuela 2-for-4, 2B; LHP Robert Gasser 5 IP, 9 H, 5 ER, 6 K, 1 BB; LHP Fred Schlichtholz 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 3 K
Prospect Watch: Robert Gasser worked through traffic over the first five innings, allowing a pair of runs, but generally looked strong. He came back out for the sixth though, and was tagged for a pair of doubles, a single and a homer before giving way without recording an out. The rough final frame put the game out of reach for a TinCaps offense that has struggled mightily in May. … Gasser finished the outing having allowed five earned runs in five official innings on a season-high nine hits. The lefty leads the TinCaps with 30.1 innings pitched through seven outings so far this year. … Lefty Fred Schlichtholz, 26, made his season debut, working two innings and striking out three. The Coronado High School product, originally a 13th-round selection in the 2017 draft, split last season between Fort Wayne and Double-A, but struggled in both spots. … The TinCaps got their only run when Corey Rosier led off the top of the sixth with a triple and came in on Robert Hassell III‘s single. The visitors struggled to do anything else as Hassell then got picked off first base and Brandon Valenzuela, who had two of the TinCaps’ four hits on the day including their only extra-base hit, struck out after Jarryd Dale got hit and reached base.
San Jose Giants 10, Storm 0
Key Stats: Marcos Castanon 1-for-2; LF Pierce Jones 1-for-3; LHP Adrian Morejon 0.1 IP, 5 H, 4 R (3 ER), 2 K
Prospect Watch: San Jose jumped out to a quick 4-0 lead and never looked back on an ugly series-ender for the Storm. Making his second rehab appearance, Adrian Morejon showed good velocity and action on his pitches, but seemed out of sorts from the beginning. The lefty struck out the leadoff batter on a breaking ball in the dirt, but his catcher couldn’t find it, putting a runner on first. After a single, Vaun Brown lofted a ball to the wall in right field that might have been caught, but instead turned into a triple. Morejon got ahead of the next hitter 1-2, but after a pair of foul tips, elevated a fastball that was turned around for another single. He did record a second strikeout – this one actually retiring the hitter – but allowed another single on his 33rd pitch of the game, and gave way without getting another out. The 23-year-old has often struggled to get his results to match his significant talents since signing in the class of 2016, and Sunday he seemed to struggle to move on when things didn’t go his way. … Lefty Jesus Gonzalez had to leave the game with an apparent ankle injury after walking three straight batters in the sixth. The 20-year-old had struck out a season-high six batters through his first 2.2 innings of work, but all three runners he left on ultimately came around to score. We’ll provide any update we get on Gonzalez’s status.
